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The Mosque: Exposes Bonfire Of Insanity

The president's low poll numbers have no correlation to his outstanding legislative victories; many of the poll respondents are possibly expressing and reflecting the racist animus propagated by the Right Wing media establishment, including FOX News.

[Black Star News Editorial]

Reckless Republican party tactics will inflict harm to the United States and its interests all over the world.

Hatred of President Barack Obama --and disappointment at his phenomenal legislative victories this past year-- pushed many Republicans and their Tea-Party allies to act against the best interest of the United States.

What's more, allowing diplomacy and global dialogue to dictate the United States' interaction with the rest of the world, as President Obama prefers, represents a threat to entrenched corporate interests --whether in boardrooms on Wall Street, or within the political class in Washington, D.C.

This challenge to the old regime is more pronounced within the Republican party.So the party has used the ugliest tactics --race-baiting; ethnic and religious bigotry-- to delegitimize President Obama and to deflect attention from the legislative achievements scored without any help from Republicans, and all serious debates.

First the so-called Tea Party Movement --which often adopted tactics that recalled the lynchmobs of the 1950s, marching around with guns in tow and hurling racist slurs -- tried to hijack power from the new administration last year by intimidating people gathered at town hall meetings to discuss the healthcare reform proposals.

The mobs failed in their crude attempted coup d'etat. They could not derail the administration's goals and eventually the healthcare reforms became the law of the land.

Meanwhile, the president's stimulus program rescued the economy from depression and sparked some life into a recovery; when additional monies were needed to help continue economic growth and employment, the Republican lawmakers in Washington said over "our dead bodies."

The Administration pumped billions of dollars into education, to rescue the nation's failing public schools system. The Obama administration also rescued the auto industry in Detroit, a feat once regarded as impossible--the auto companies are in fact hiring again. The government introduced financial reform on Wall Street as well as a consumer protection agency.

All of these achievements should elevate the president's stature nationally.

Eventually they still may, when people are able to ignore the racist bile coming out of the mouths of well-paid propagandists: especially Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck.

The president's low poll numbers have no correlation to his outstanding legislative victories; many of the poll respondents are possibly expressing and reflecting the animus propagated by the Right Wing media establishment, including FOX News.

Now, the Republicans are using the debate over the construction of a cultural center with a mosque near the site of the 9/11 attacks at the World Trade Center, for political gain.

Some of the most hateful vitriol have come from the despicable Newt Gingrich, a former Republican party Congressman, who compared the proposed construction to having the Nazis build near the Holocaust Museum.

The Republicans have turned the proposed construction into a national hate-Islam fest.

It's not surprising that in New York City this week, as a possible consequence of the hate-fest promoted by people like Gingrich, that a cab driver, Ahmed H. Sharif, was stabbed and slashed by a passenger, Michael Enright, who first asked him whether he was a Muslim. He survived the assault.

The prospects of more such attacks should not be underestimated, so long as the hate-fest, amplified by a broadcast terrorist like Limbaugh, continues.

Now an alleged "Christian" pastor, Terry Jones --alleged because what kind of Christian would organize such a hate fest-- has called for a bonfire of Korans on September 11, the anniversary of the attacks against the United States.

He has also posted signs on his church lawn in Gainesville, Florida, declaring "Islam Is Of The Devil." One wonders whether the "pastor" will express surprise if some Muslims respond unkindly to his invitation.

To his great credit, New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has stood firm. He has been one of the staunchest supporters of the construction, saying the Constitutional guarantees and protections should not be enforced selectively; it applies to all faiths.

Ironically, some leading Democrats such as Senator Harry Reid, who is facing a serious challenge in the midterm election, also oppose the construction at the location preferred by the developers. Reid has surrendered to naked political ambition.

Also equally shameful was the capitulation by the Anti-Defamation League, which also came out against construction at the proposed site.